Sarasota Creek Conditions Overview

Coastal streams carry rainwater collected from the surrounding watershed downstream to bays and the Gulf of Mexico. As the rainwater flows over pavement, buildings, vegetation, and through soil, it collects organic material and chemical pollutants that affect coastal water quality. Monitoring of creek conditions can help us to understand and locate the sources of water quality problems and identify potential solutions.

Seventeen coastal creeks are profiled in this section. Water quality ratings for each are given on a calendar year basis and are determined by comparing sampled values of selected water quality indicators to regulatory standards. The indicators compared are those used by environmental regulators to assess stream health. These are: total nitrogen, total phosphorus, chlorophyll a, and dissolved oxygen saturation. Also shown on the Creek Conditions Reports are additional measures of environmental health related to water quality. Learn more about Creek Conditions »

Creek Ratings

For a creek to receive a Pass rating, sample values for these indicators must meet or exceed established standards; otherwise, it receives a Caution rating.

Report Year:

To view a page with more detailed condition information for a particular tidal creek basin, click on its name below. There you will find graphs, high, low, historical and average values for the water quality parameters used in determining the ratings, as well as other important indicators of stream water quality, and watershed characteristics like land use types and extent of impervious features.

1. Whitaker Bayou

2. Hudson Bayou

3. Phillippi Creek

4. Matheny Creek

5. Elligraw Bayou

6. Clower Creek

7. Catfish Creek

8. North Creek

9. South Creek

10. Cow Pen Slough

11. Curry Creek

12. Hatchett Creek

13. Alligator Creek

14. Woodmere Creek

15. Forked Creek

16. Gottfried Creek

17. Ainger Creek

Creek Conditions Index

The Creek Conditions Index gives a quick assessment of the water quality in each creek during a particular year by examining four important indicators of nutrient pollution: chlorophyll a, nitrogen, phosphorus, and dissolved oxygen saturation. The rating system used here is a simplified version of the methods used by regulators to assess stream health. Each creek receives either a PASS or CAUTION rating, depending on whether the water quality in both its freshwater and marine stream components meets predefined conditions based on the state's Numeric Nutrient Criteria. Learn more about how ratings are assigned »